


Cold Nostalgia

by akatsuki_tsukiyomi (Yumi25Nakashima)



Series: First Blush [48]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Alternate Universe - College/University, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, F/M, Hetalia Countries Using Human Names, Implied Relationships, Past Relationship(s), Reader-Insert, Reminiscing, Romance, Separations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 18:01:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28549809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yumi25Nakashima/pseuds/akatsuki_tsukiyomi
Summary: A fleeting glimpse at a familiar shadow. The light turns on. I forget again.
Relationships: South Korea (Hetalia)/Reader
Series: First Blush [48]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2089500
Kudos: 1





	Cold Nostalgia

**Author's Note:**

> (F/N) - Reader's First Name  
> (L/N) - Reader's Last Name  
> Im Yong Soo - South Korea's official human name  
> Lee Siu Chun - Hong Kong's official human name (Cantonese)  
> Honda Kiku - Japan's official human name  
> Wang Yao - China's official human name

On the side of the road fifteen minutes from his childhood home, a small hill stood in the middle of a small body of water surrounding it from three sides. He looked out, pushing the button on the car door to drag the window down. The breeze flew in, ruffling his short dark hair. With it came the lovely fragrance of flowers and the rural countryside.

" _Jeogi_ ," **over there** he pointed to the hilltop as he tugged on Siu Chun's sleeve. The younger man looked over, unplugging an earbud from his ear and leaning close to look out the window. Atop the hill lay a flowerbed that surrounded a large and old tree. It's green leaves danced with the wind.

He had been telling his friends about the tree he used to go to after school every day when he was a child.

"It's beautiful," Siu Chun affirmed. The boy went back to listening to the tunes playing from his phone as he rested. Kiku continued driving and the little hill was soon out of view.

Yong Soo turned his head to keep looking at it.

They soon arrived at his large family estate, the unpaved dirt road greeting them with its rusticness.

He hurriedly pushed open his car door as Kiku parked.

" _Danyeo wass-eoyo_!" **I'm back/home** He exclaimed, hurriedly making his way inside and leaving his companions to complain as they lugged his luggage along with theirs.

Kiku, Siu Chun, and Yao were greeted by an elderly couple, the estate's head housekeepers as Yong Soo had told them. The said man rejoined them, already out of his t-shirt and jeans and freshly changed into a white and blue _hanbok_ and _jeogori_.

"Welcome to my home!" He greeted cheerfully, hands spread at his sides before he politely bowed. The elderly couple beside him bowed with him, welcoming their guests. The three men bowed back.

"We'll help you take your luggage," the old man said, already taking Siu Chun's duffel bag from his shoulder. Two younger men came forward, helping Kiku and Yao with their bags.

"This way, please," the old woman said, gesturing for them to follow her. They quickly shook off their shooks and got up on the elevated platform of the house and stepped into the house slippers they were presented with. The wooden floorboards were polished until they shone. Yong Soo walked with the old woman, engaging with her in pleasantries. They soon came upon rows upon rows of wooden sliding doors that overlooked the courtyard. Their luggage was placed neatly outside each door, Yao's at the door closest to where they were and Kiku's at the end.

The woman slid open one door, Yao's, and showed them the interior. It was spacious enough for one person to lounge in comfortably. It was decorated with large aesthetic paintings, a large wooden chest of drawers, and a small wooden table with cushions on all sides. She stepped in, making her way to the drawers and pulled open the bottom-most drawer. It slid open to reveal a large space where a soft white mattress lay folded.

"Here is your futon and," she placed her hand flat on the drawer right above the one she had opened. "Here you will find your pillow."

She stepped back out and smiled warmly at the boys.

  
"Please join us for dinner at a quarter past six," she said before she bowed and left. Yao walked into the room that had been opened, stretching out.

"I'm tired," he yawned, purring like a cat as he laid out on the cool wooden floor.

"My room's over there," Yong Soo said as he pointed to a room on the adjacent wall from theirs. "Let's take a quick nap and after dinner, we can go out!"

"Whatever you say," Siu Chun mumbled, already sliding his door closed.

\---

"Everything's so quiet at night," Kiku commented, holding up his camera to capture the dim street lights washing the street with a soft warm glow. Yong Soo closed his eyes as he took in the scent of his hometown. It was a stark difference from the city life. He could feel his memories crashing back into him.

He remembered running up and down this street as he played with his neighbours, boys and girls he had forgotten in the past years. He remembered the boys he used to hang out with in middle school, how they were so caught up in acting as their favourite video game characters as they chased each other and mocked battles under the sun.

After a while of walking, they soon approached the clearing with the hill in the middle of the water, the same hill they had passed on their way to his house. He jogged ahead of his friends, excited to be reunited once again with the magnificence of nature.

Kiku followed close behind him once he too spotted the beautiful sight. He went about shooting multiple photos; of the tree under the moonlight, of the stars and the moon, of the flowers, of his friends. He kept moving about, changing the angle and trying to get the perfect shot. Siu Chun walked toward the edge, inspecting his reflection in the still waters that reflected the night sky like a mirror. He had his earbuds once again, a sentimental feeling consuming him and making him feel like he was the actor in an aesthetic music video of childhood romance.

Yao finally reached the three, the older man lagging, and he marvelled at the picturesque scene. He approached the tree, wanting to sit beside its trunk and looked up. They were far from the town's lights. The stars shone more brilliantly where they were, the sky opening up a whole new world of wonder to their eyes.

He looked at the sturdy old tree and pressed his fingertips along it. Yao walked around it, entranced at its splendour, not noticing that Kiku was taking candid shots of his expression of awe.

Somewhere at the level of his hip, on the trunk of the tree, was a carving of a name.

" _Im Yong Soo_ ," he read out, tracing the crudely marked letters. Yong Soo perked up as Yao broke their enthralled silence. He came over, along with Siu Chun, while Kiku shifted closer, crouched close to the ground with his camera pointing upwards to his friends.

Yao noticed a similar carving close by and he traced it, slowly reading out an unfamiliar name.

Yong Soo felt himself take an unconscious sharp breath as the image of a young girl flashed in his mind. He remembered running from his house to that hill, a girl his age next to him, holding his hand as they laughed. He remembered her teaching him to make flower crowns. He remembered climbing up the tree's strong branches as she sat comfortably on the grass below. He remembered thinking that she was the most beautiful girl he had ever laid his eyes upon. It seemed so long ago.

He squinted, reading out the name Yao had spoken.

"A girl?" Siu Chun asked aloud, looking at Yong Soo with curiosity.

"A girlfriend?" Yao snickered, bringing a hand to his mouth as he sent the boy teasing look.

Yong Soo rubbed his arm, shaking his head.

"She was a friend," he told them.

"Was?" Kiku asked, looking up from his camera.

He shrugged, turning to walk away from the shade of the tree to look up at the stars.

"We were childhood friends. I hung around with her a lot. But then she moved away. We didn't stay in touch after that. Not like it passed my mind to. I barely remember her now," he said.

Yao watched him as he kept his distance, the memory of whoever the mysterious name was made him press his lips tightly together. He wondered what Yong Soo was feeling.

He yawned and stretched again, pulling Siu Chun with him.

" _Sōngshǒu_ ," **Let's go** Yao mumbled. "I'm tired."

Kiku snapped a few more shots before he jogged to catch up with his friends.

Yong Soo took a look back, past Kiku.

He felt a bittersweet feeling envelope him.

He could still remember the day they had carved their names on that tree, two friends promising to be connected forever. The next day, she was gone like the wind. It took a while for him to understand why she had suddenly up and left. He was confused for a long while after that. He wondered if he had done something wrong. He could not understand how time could be so cruel like that.

He sighed, only wishing her well wherever she was. He wondered if she remembered that tree, his name, and their promise.

\---

She scrolled aimlessly through her phone. She laughed at the ridiculous photos her friends had posted. Recently, memes had been flooding her social media dashboard.

A beautiful photo of nature caught her eye and she quickly scrolled back up to it. An acquaintance from her Computer Science class that she followed had posted another of his weekly scenic photography. She followed him mainly because of the aesthetic photos he posted every week. It made her think of the beauty of the world, taking her away from whatever problem she was brooding over at any time.

He had posted a charming image of a low-angle shot of a large tree encircled by a bed of white flowers with the night sky in the background. The silhouette of a boy was on the side, his stature vaguely familiar to her. Even the entire scene looked familiar to her, the memories of that place buried somewhere in the back of her mind.

She was reminded of home.

She smiled and liked the photo.

Maybe sometime she could travel back. 

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally published in Wattpad on Aug 7, 2020.


End file.
